NCAA Big Ten: Maryland, Rutgers joining conference

This is what it's come to; the utter dismissal of geographical relevance coupled with the accelerated dilution of the conference's product.

Why?

Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany - likely motivated by the number of households in the New York, Baltimore and Washington D.C. - now has the opportunity to expand the brand of the conference and capitalize financially in a new, otherwise indifferent market. The proponents of the expansion will sing its praises that now the mighty Big Ten is bridging the gap in the popularity contest with the likes of the SEC and the Pac-12.

Except image isn't the conference's biggest problem. What remains unaddressed is the cavernous gap competitively with the programs of schools down south and out west. The additions of Maryland and Rutgers do little to alleviate that.

Rutgers -a member of the Big East since 1991 and a functioning football program since 1869- has appeared in a total of seven postseason bowls, six of which coming in 2005 or later. Maryland, a charter member of the ACC from 1953, lays claim to a pair of national championships (1951 and 1953) and an 11-11-2 mark in postseason play.

It's certainly not that these programs lack the historic value to be a part of a top-tier conference- Rutgers boasts 626 victories and Maryland 611- but there's little relevance of those schools to the Midwest.

There's nothing sexy about the future of a potential rivalry between Rutgers and Indiana or Michigan and Maryland. At best, those would be fringe non-conference games, but instead they'll soon become a fixture of the Big Ten schedule.

Sure, Rutgers (9-1) is ranked No. 21 in the latest AP Top 25 football poll, but their quality win is a 35-26 conquest of a 4-7 Arkansas team. The Knights' one loss? A 35-23 downer to Kent State.

Given their struggles against Mid-American Conference schools, they are more like their new Big Ten kin than originally thought. Not that that alone should justify conference realignment, especially when the Golden Flashes and Northern Illinois Huskies are ripe for the picking.

The argument can be made that Maryland carries a bit more cache on the basketball court, just over 10 years removed from a national championship. Though the Terps have qualified for the NCAA Tournament just five times since 2002 and have advanced to the Sweet 16 just once in that time frame.

Though, make no mistake. For all parties involved, this is a financial move. Brand recognition, brand expansion and multimillion-dollar television deals rule the day.

Gone are the days of Michigan and Ohio State deciding the fate of the Big Ten on the final week of the regular season. Sure it's feasible that the two titans of the conference could again rise to mutual success and relevance- within the constraints of the law, of course- to settle the score in the Big Ten Championship Game. In Indianapolis, brought to you by Fox, sponsored by Dr. Pepper.

Traditionalists are being pushed aside, for the perceived betterment of college athletics. The NCAA will give you its long-overdue playoff system in college football, as long as the sponsorship dollars are plentiful enough. The television ratings bonanza will commence, as the ticket prices continue to skyrocket as the ends become further disjointed from the means.

College athletics is a business after all, regardless of how little sense it makes.